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Most of us grow up trusting in our parents, our teachers, the elders in our congregation. We look to them for help and guidance. But when it comes to matters of eternal life with our Lord Jesus Christ; who do you trust?
My parents were baptized as Jehovah Witnesses in 1947. They had just come through the trials of World War II. They were looking for structure and meaning in their lives. The Watchtower offered that, along with easy answers to any scriptural question that they could ask.
I grew up going to all the meetings each week, giving talks, going out in service on the weekends, vacation pioneering during the summer and attending those 8 day conventions that we all loved. We were active in the congregation and we had a lot of good friends. I had plans. I was going to pioneer and then go to Bethel and serve Jehovah, through the Watchtower, for the rest of my life.
Then something happened. It seemed like it came out of the blue without any warning, but looking back I can see that there were warning signs. My mother was disfellowshiped. My parents divorced. I was 16 and I decided to live with my Mother. She stopped going to meetings and so did I. No one called. All of my good friends stopped coming over. They didn’t want to talk to me at school. Our carefully constructed life along with its false sense of security collapsed in an instant. I felt abandoned. Abandoned by my father, by my good friends and by Jehovah God. In self-defense, I withdrew. I decided that if that’s the way they wanted to be, so be it.
I finished high school and started college. I dropped out of college after one year and I was drafted into the Army. I met Kim while in the Army in Korea. We got married and we have two sons. While the boys were growing up my wife, who had a Baptist, Buddhist background, wanted to take the boys to some kind of church. The only thing that I knew was the Jehovah’s Witnesses and I didn’t want to get involved with that again. So we did nothing about their spiritual education.
In 1980 my father suffered a sever hart attack. He was an elder in the Vallejo congregation in California and we were living in the Chicago area. My sons had never met their grandfather, mostly because I was still bitter about the divorce and how things had gone down during the break up. I thought that I should try and make amends and allow my children to get to know their grandfather before in was too late. So I arranged a job transfer to San Francisco.
My boys got to know their grandfather. He, being an elder, tried to talk me into going back to meetings and becoming a JW again. But I told him I wanted nothing to do with the Watchtower and I didn’t want to discuss it any further.
He respected my wishes and never spoke about it again. 1981 he had his last heart attack. During the funeral and during the family gathering afterward, my brothers and sisters tried talking me into coming back to the Watchtower. I felt bad about not having reconciled completely with my father and I agreed to start a "bible study" and started back attending meetings. Kim was happy with the Jehovah’s Witnesses because they were so loving and so family oriented. The boys were happy with the new friends they were making and they didn’t mind going out in service too much. They weren’t happy about giving up birthdays and Christmas, but they went along with us.
As for myself I fell right back into the routine. Five meetings a week, field service on week ends, conventions and assemblies each year. I decided that If I was going to do this again I was going to give it 100%. After I got baptized I started Aux. Pioneering(60 hours per month door to door) after 6 months of that I started full time pioneering(90 hours per month). I pioneered for 3 years. At the same time my responsibilities in the congregation increased. I was appointed as a Ministerial Servant and then later as an Elder. During my eight years as an elder I was a book study conductor, Theocratic School Overseer and Watchtower conductor. I was active in giving public talks and have spoken at several assemblies.
I was active in field service and always tried to take the lead in the door-to-door work. I enjoyed talking with people about the Bible and the hope that Jehovah offers all believers. There were a couple of issues that I felt a little uncomfortable with. The main one was; I never felt comfortable with the Watchtower’s view of Jesus. Another issue was the New World Translation. When I was growing up we always used the American Standard Translation, but now they were using this new translation and it was quite different from what I was used to. But I didn’t let these "minor" things bother me too much I just went along with the program.
Once in a while in field service I would meet someone that really knew their Bible. I was able to go toe to toe with the best of them and I would never admit that they had a valid point nor would I concede any of my points. But after, when I was alone I would think about what they had said and I would try to research their points. The Watchtower always had an answer. Which was very comforting. But I wanted to know why others saw the scriptures differently, why did they believe the way they did? Could they be right about the deity of Christ, the Trinity and other doctrines? I was afraid to find out. I knew what the Watchtower taught and I knew they were absolutely trust worthy. I knew that the Watchtower scholarship was pure and beyond question. Yet I wondered.
The society was very clear about going to outside sources. They strongly discouraged it. In fact in an article about those who dare question the Watchtower they said this:
*** w81 8/15 28-9 Serving Jehovah "Shoulder to Shoulder" *** They do not want to serve "shoulder to shoulder" with the worldwide brotherhood. (Compare Ephesians 2:19-22.) Rather, they present a "stubborn shoulder" to Jehovah’s words. (Zech. 7:11, 12) Reviling the pattern of the "pure language" that Jehovah has so graciously taught his people over the past century, these haughty ones try to draw the "sheep" away from the one international "flock" that Jesus has gathered in the earth. (John 10:7-10, 16) They try to sow doubts and to separate unsuspecting ones from the bounteous "table" of spiritual food spread at the Kingdom Halls of Jehovah’s Witnesses, where truly there is ‘nothing lacking.’ (Ps. 23:1-6) They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such ‘Bible reading,’ they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom’s clergy were teaching 100 years ago, and some have even returned to celebrating Christendom’s festivals again, such as the Roman Saturnalia of December 25! Jesus and his apostles warned against such lawless ones.—Matt. 24:11-13; Acts 20:28-30; 2 Pet. 2:1, 22.
What is that "pure language" that Jehovah has taught His people in the past century? The Bible has been around for hundreds of centuries so they can’t be talking about the Bible. They must be talking about the Watchtower publications. According to the Watchtower their publications are the "pure language" of Jehovah, not the Bible. Anyone who thinks otherwise is an apostate. I didn’t want to be an apostate. But still, I had serious questions and I didn’t have anyone to talk to about these questions.
I had noticed in the pages of the Watchtower that the society would often use and referenced many different Bible translations and Bible commentaries and dictionaries. So I reasoned that if they could use them so could I. But this article made it clear that it was wrong to do so. I was confused and didn’t know what to do so I did nothing and just let it slide.
Then one day out in field service someone asked me a simple question. Had the Watchtower ever made mistake in the past? And if so, could they be wrong about their teachings today? I knew that yes the Watchtower had made mistakes in the past but I had never thought about it like that before. Yes they could be wrong today if they had been wrong in the past. Maybe they weren’t infallible after all. I knew they always said they were fallible, but they always spoke and taught dogmatically. They always insisted that they were to be believed and followed without question. But if they had been wrong in the past, it was possible that they could be wrong today.
So I decided that I would use the references that the Watchtower used. I figured that they would be safe ground, after all, they used them.
But the more research and study I did the more confused I became. The Watchtower and Christian Scholarship rarely agreed. Who was I to believe? Who could I trust? The answer was right in my hand. I was reading in the book of Proverbs 3:5
*** Rbi8 Proverbs 3:5-6 *** 5 Trust in Jehovah with all your heart and do not lean upon your own understanding. 6 In all your ways take notice of him, and he himself will make your paths straight.
I had read this scripture many times and I had always equated it to Watchtower publications. But this time it became crystal clear. If I wanted true answers to my questions I must rely upon Jehovah, Jesus and the Holy spirit for guidance. I decided to take my confusion to God in prayer. I told our heavenly Father that it didn’t matter to me if Jesus was God or not. I admitted that it was beyond me to figure out. The more I studied the more confused I became. I needed to know the truth, no matter what that truth was. I asked Jesus into my heart. I asked Him to fill me with His Holy Spirit. I asked Him to show me the truth.
From that point, I started studying the Bible differently. I started using the Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek text. I compared word for word the New World Translation with the literal English translation of the Greek. I began noticing some subtle but important deviations in the translation. Translators have some liberty when translating from one language to another, they are allowed to make minor changes to make the text more easily understandable but they are not permitted to make changes that actually change the meaning of the original text. I noticed that the Watchtower’s translation had actually changed the meaning of the original text. One important example of this is the translation of the preposition "en". If you look and the binding page of the KIT, you will notice that there is a chart with a circle in it. In the circle and around the circle are Greek prepositions showing their relationship to the circle. This helps us to understand what the prepositions mean and how it is to be translated. The Greek preposition "en" is inside the circle. So we know that "en" means "inside of" and is usually translated simply "in." But the Watchtower has changed this simple preposition into the paraphrase "in union with." An example of this is at John 17:21 all references to the Father being in Christ and Christ being in each believer is obscured by the paraphrase "in union with." Why? Why take a simple preposition which is easily and correctly translated "in" and change it to a three letter paraphrase? A word search on my computer showed that they had done this 104 times in the New Testament. I asked everyone that I knew about why they would do such a thing, but no one knew, or if they knew they weren’t saying.
Then one day while I was reading a book by John Walvoord entitled "Jesus Christ Our Lord" he was discussing the attributes that make Jesus God. One of these attributes was the fact that Jesus said that He and the Father and the Holy Spirit are in each believer. If Jesus is in each believer then He must be omnipresent and if He is omnipresent then He must be God because only God is omnipresent.
Then it hit me why the Watchtower chose to paraphrase the preposition "in." they were trying to hide the fact that Jesus is indeed God, that the Father is indeed God and that the Holy Spirit is indeed God simply by the fact that they indwell each believer. Only God could do that.
The Watchtower would rather change the meaning of God’s word than change their position on the deity of Christ and the Trinity. They must feel that their word is better and more correct than God’s word. After all they were the only ones given the "pure language of Jehovah in the past century." This realization shook me to my very foundation. This was clearly an act of sinning against the Holy Spirit, the only unforgivable sin.
I realized that I was in an apostate organization. The Watchtower had turned away from the true God long ago. They were just using God’s word as a cover for their own interest. The question I had to face was, what was I going to do about it. All of my friends and family were JWs. Quitting would ruin my life and all the hard work I had done. But yet the truth couldn’t be denied. So I stepped down as an elder and I stopped going out in service. But I wasn’t strong enough at that time to disassociate. But I knew deep down that my days as a JW were numbered.
At about this time I got another wake up call. I was at work when I got a call from my wife that Jesse, our youngest son, had been admitted into the hospital and that he was in intensive care. It seems that he was suffering from a bleeding ulcer. He was living in his own apartment and had been sick for a couple of days. His older brother had tried to get in touch with him but couldn’t and that worried him. He went over to Jesse’s apartment and found him nearly unconscious. He rushed him to the hospital. It was bad. His blood count was around 9 and his blood pressure was null. The doctor told him that if he didn’t take a blood transfusion he could die. Jesse refused the transfusion.
I came face to face with what I had taught this young man and what I had taught the congregation when we went through the Blood Booklet in the book study. On one hand I was proud that he had the courage of his convictions, but on the other hand I was ashamed of what I had taught him.
By the time that I got to the hospital the Elders were already there, making sure that he didn’t take blood and if he did they would take action against him. I was still an Elder, so I was caught between a rock and a hard spot. I wanted to talk with Jesse, to convince him that Jehovah didn’t want him to die. I wanted to tell him that the scriptures don’t require his death. The Bible makes it clear that what is sacred about blood is the life that it maintains. Life is sacred to God. God gave his only begotten Son so that we might have life. But I couldn’t speak to him about it.
As it turned out the doctors were able to stop the bleeding and they gave him blood expanders. He recovered. We were blessed that he was healthy enough to recover from so much blood loss. I was given a second chance to correct my error. I think that I was able to convince him to store his own blood in case this happened again. I wondered; what could give a 20 year old bleeding ulcers? Could it be the Watchtower life style?
Then two other things happened. In 1995 the Watchtower released the CD ROM and in December they made a major change in the 1914 doctrine.
Back in 1983 while I was doing street work someone came up to me and asked if I knew the Watchtower was using a spiritualist as a reference in defense of John 1:1 in the NWT. I asked who, he said Johannes Greber. I responded that yes I knew they referenced Johannes Greber but no I didn’t’ know he was a spiritualist. He advised me to check it out so I did. I looked up his name in the index. There were two references none of these made any reference to him being a spiritualist so I just thought that the guy who told me was wrong and I forgot about it. Then later that year some one had asked the Watchtower why they had stopped using Greber in support of the NWT. In a "Readers Questions" article the Watchtower response was that they had used him in the past but in the 1980 edition of his Bible he stated that he had used his wife as a medium and had spoken to spirits who helped him with his translation. After finding this out the Watchtower stopped using him. That seemed reasonable to me, case closed.
Then one day while browsing in a used book store I happened upon a copy of Johannes Greber’s translation, a 1937 edition. I read the introduction and in this edition he clearly said that he had used spirits to help him translate. I wondered if the Watchtower knew this. I couldn’t prove it one way or the other so I just put in on the back burner.
When the Watchtower released their CD ROM I did a search of Greber’s name and I came up with several hits going back as far and 1955. In 1955 the Watchtower had said: *** w55 10/1 603 Part 3: What Do the Scriptures Say About "Survival After Death"? *** It comes as no surprise that one Johannes Greber, a former Catholic clergyman, has become a spiritualist and has published the book entitled "Communication with the Spirit World, Its laws and Its Purpose." (1932, Macoy Publishing Company, New York)
*** w56 2/15 110-1 Triumphing over Wicked Spirit Forces *** 10 Says Johannes Greber in the introduction of his translation of The New Testament, copyrighted in 1937: "I myself was a Catholic priest, and until I was forty-eight years old had never as much as believed in the possibility of communicating with the world of God’s spirits. The day came, however, when I involuntarily took my first step toward such communication, and experienced things that shook me to the depths of my soul. . . . My experiences are related in a book that has appeared in both German and English and bears the title, Communication with the Spirit-World: Its Laws and Its Purpose." (Page 15, ¶ 2, 3) In keeping with his Roman Catholic extraction Greber’s translation is bound with a gold-leaf cross on its stiff front cover. In the Foreword of his aforementioned book ex-priest Greber says: "The most significant spiritualistic book is the Bible." Under this impression Greber endeavors to make his New Testament translation read very spiritualistic.
These articles make it very clear that the Watchtower knew that Greber was a spiritualist long before 1980. At first I thought that maybe the writer in 1983 hadn’t done his home work. After all, 25 years is a long time ago maybe he just didn’t know what had been written that long ago. I then looked in the new indexes to see if they made reference to these older articles. No, the index omitted all mention of the incriminating articles. There were only the two references that I had seen in 1983. This could not have been a mistake. The Watchtower prides themselves on the perfection of the indexes, they brag about how easy they make research because they contain all references to every person, place, or thing mentioned in any Watchtower publication.
It was painfully clear that they had lied about Greber and then they tried to cover it up by removing all incriminating references. My faith in the Watchtower took another big hit.
Then in December 1995 the Watchtower made a startling change in the 1914 doctrine. They had been teaching for the past 50 years that the 1914 generation was the generation Jesus spoke of in Mat 24:34:
(Matthew 24:34) Truly I say to YOU that this generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur.
The 1914 generation would not pass away until the end had come. But the 1914 generation was getting very old and the end still had not come. So a change was needed. I had hoped that for once the Watchtower would be honest about their faulty chronology but that didn’t happen. They simply changed the meaning of "this generation." It was no longer a specific generation but now it was a more generalized generation: the generation that is alive at the end. This was the way most Christians understood it in the first place. To support this change they used the same Christian commentaries that they condemned in the past. Obviously this was new light for the Watchtower, but it was very old light for most Christians. I wondered what other "light" Christians had that the Watchtower was blind to? I made it my resolve to find out.
It was obvious to me that the Watchtower could not be trusted. When the Bible proves Watchtower doctrine to be wrong, they simply change the Bible to suit their doctrine. When they make alliances with demon worshippers and get caught at it, they lie about it and try to cover it up. When Watchtower doctrine is proved false by the passing of time they simply change the doctrine to suit their needs.
I disassociated 1997. I knew that it would cost me. I knew that I would be branded as an apostate. I knew that it would cost me most of my relationships here on earth. However, I also knew that I would gain a very special relationship, a relationship that surpasses all other relationships, an eternal relationship with our Lord and our Savior Jesus Christ .
I hope that others can learn from my experience. Ask yourself, who do you trust? Is your hope and trust in a human organization or do you put your hope and trust in a relationship with Jesus? He stands at the door of your heart wanting to come in. Trust in Him. Also, when something bothers you about what you are being taught, don’t let it slide, don’t be complacent. Don’t just settle for the easy way. Take immediate action. Your eternal life depends upon it. (Ps 146:1-10, Rev 3:20)
December 2, 1996
Carl Yarbrough P.O. Box 5488 Eureka, CA 95502-5488
(Following is my letter sent to the Body of Elders)
Body of Elders Eureka East Congregation 4511 Campton Road Eureka, CA 95501
Dear Brothers,
As you know, up until April of 1996 I’ve been a very active and loyal member of the Watchtower Organization. In April I resigned as an elder. I had served the congregation as an elder and School overseer for two years. Prior to this I served the congregation in La Habra as an elder, full-time pioneer and as a publisher. I have always tried to give my best to Jehovah and to the Organization that bears His name. During that time and even earlier, I’ve had questions about certain teachings and doctrines that are unique to our faith. Some of these questions were answered. Some were not. I didn’t think too much about these questions because I always felt that in time it would be made clear. However, in Nov. 1995 the Organization changed a very important and pivotal doctrine. For over 50 years we have taught that all the things foretold in Matt 24 would happen before those who where alive and aware in 1914 passed away. As the years passed the Organization made changes to the age of those who were considered "this generation". Finally, reality forced a complete change of our understanding of ‘generation’. This change has been well written and softened to the point that most Jehovah’s Witnesses fail to understand what has really happened. And even for those who do understand the gravity of this change, they realize that they can’t do anything about it. We have no voice in such changes. I think that the current teaching is correct and that the Organization was wrong from the beginning. Once again past ‘new light’ has been proven to be no light at all. However, this change got me to thinking about what other teachings might be wrong. What about the rest of the teaching about 1914? What about the two class Christian system? Could these have errors too? After a year of detailed study I have come to some conclusions concerning these teachings. These conclusions have affected my relationship with the Organization and the congregation. I know that my behavior has seemed strange in view of how dedicated I have been in the past. I know that I owe an explanation for my change in attitude. I would like to state here and now that I love Jehovah and Jesus and the friends in the congregation. However, I feel that there are some serious problems with what we teach and I feel that it would be dishonest and hypocritical to continue to teach them. Therefore, by way of explanation and in order to maintain my integrity to Jehovah and Jesus Christ, I submit the following.
After years of study in association with the Organization I have come to the conclusion that the only authority, the only revealed truth, the only ‘channel’ of communication that God uses today is His word the Holy Bible and the Holy Spirit. Jesus said at John 16:12-15:
(John 16:12-15) "I have many things yet to say to YOU, but YOU are not able to bear them at present. 13 However, when that one arrives, the spirit of the truth, he will guide YOU into all the truth, for he will not speak of his own impulse, but what things he hears he will speak, and he will declare to YOU the things coming. 14 That one will glorify me, because he will receive from what is mine and will declare it to YOU. 15 All the things that the Father has are mine. That is why I said he receives from what is mine and declares [it] to YOU.
Clearly all that we need to know and understand about the Father and His Son Jesus is contained in scripture and we can ask the Holy Spirit to help us to understand "all the truth" and He will do so in Christ name. We don’t need a sinful human organization to tell us what we should believe and what the Bible’s message is. The idea that without the Organization we could never understand the Bible and apart from the Organization we aren’t saved, is human thinking and not Gods. Such teaching contradicts Jesus and maligns the Holy Spirit. I sometimes wonder if the Organization is trying to take the place of the Holy Spirit. It seems that way, especially in view of the questions asked of those who are being baptized. Where in the Bible do we get the authority to baptize in the name of the Organization? Clearly Paul condemned such in his letter to the Corinthians:
(1 Corinthians 1:12-15) What I mean is this, that each one of YOU says: "I belong to Paul," "But I to Apollos," "But I to Cephas," "But I to Christ." 13 The Christ exists divided. Paul was not impaled for YOU, was he? Or were YOU baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I am thankful I baptized none of YOU except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one may say that YOU were baptized in my name.
When was the Organization impaled for us? Where do we get the authority to baptize people as Jehovah’s Witness, rather then Christians? Why don’t we simply follow Jesus command to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit?
I believe that the Organization is made up of imperfect men who have no special insight or understanding of God’s word or will. In fact history shows that they have continually gone beyond what is written in the Bible, i.e. date setting, misapplication of scripture etc.
The Bible is clear about what we need to believe in order to be saved. First we need to believe that Jesus is the Son of God. That He died for our sin and that he was raised on the third day. Having come to such a belief we then will be moved out of love and appreciation to learn what is required of a follower of Christ. We will then try to conform our lives to His standards, which are clearly stated in the scripture. However, humans insist on adding to this simple and basic requirement. Jesus fought with the religious leaders of his day because they added thousands of additional requirements. Today the Organization has done much the same thing. In addition to believing in Jesus we are told that we must believe that He has been present in his kingdom beginning in 1914. We must believe that 1914 was the end of the ‘Gentile times’. We must believe that 1914 was the beginning of the ‘last days’.
We are told that the ‘Gentile times’ began when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the temple in Jerusalem in the year 607 BCE and lasted 2520 years, which ended in 1914. The 2520 year period is taken from Dan 4. Chapter 4 deals with Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, we are told that his dream of a large tree being cut down an banded for 7 times represents God’s kingdom on earth that was ‘trampled upon by the gentiles’. The calculation given is found in the book Kingdom Come:
*** kc 135-6 14 The King Reigns! *** Turning to chapter 12 of Revelation, we note that verses ?Re 12:?6 and 14 show a period of 1,260 days to be "a time and times and half a time," or 1 + 2 + 1/2 for a total of 3 1/2 times. Therefore, "a time" would be equal to 360 days, or 12 lunar months averaging 30 days each. "Seven times" would come to 2,520 days; and the Biblical prophetic reckoning of "a day for a year, a day for a year," indicates that these actually would work out to be a period of 2,520 calendar years. (Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6) This, therefore, is the duration of the "seven times"-the Gentile Times.
Then the 2520 years are subtracted from 607 plus one for no zero year we come up with 1914 which marks the beginning of Christ ‘parousia’, the end of the Gentile times and the beginning of the ‘last days’.
What’s wrong with this doctrine? First and foremost it is not a scriptural teaching, it is a product of human reasoning and speculation. This very type of speculation is forbidden my none other then Jesus Christ himself. At Acts 1:6 the disciples ask Jesus if he was going to restore the kingdom at this time. He responded in verse 7 "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father has put in His own authority."(NKJV) The word ‘times’ in the Greek is "Chronos" and is defined in Strongs as "Duration of time, which may be a point, a lapse, a span, a period, a stretch, a quantity." Therefore, it is not for us to know the duration of time, the span of time or the stretch of time before the kingdom is to be established. But the Organization has chosen time and time again to ignore this very clear command from Jesus. The fact that this teaching is mere speculation and that such speculation is condemned in scripture would indicate that it has nothing to do with salvation and is not a necessary, nor is it even a desirable belief.
But for the sake of argument lets consider this teaching in more detail. There are other very obvious facts that prove this belief to be wrong. For example: the calculations are based upon a 360 day year. Today we do not use a 360 day calendar, we use a 365 day calendar. It is impossible to superimpose a 360 day year on a calendar that uses 365 day years and expect to calculate the correct date. In order to be correct we need to convert 2520 years into something that is common to both types of calendars. The common unit would be days. So if we multiplied the 2520 years by 360 days we get 907,200 days. To equalize for 365 day year we need to divide 907,200 by 365 which equals 2485.479 years. Now if we subtract 607 from 2485.5 (rounded off) plus one for no zero year we get 1881.5. 1881 is the year given by Russell as the date that the anointed would be ‘raptured’ to heaven to be with Christ. However, if we really want to be accurate, we need to account for leap years. Leap years would account for another 2.5 years. This would put the date at 1884, which is a very familiar date to Seventh Day Adventist who predicted that Christ would return in that year. Another failed date. All date setting and date calculations have proven to be false, to the shame of those who presume to contradict Christ’s command, ‘it is not for you to know’. Therefore, in the most simplest terms, the 1914 date is wrong based upon simple math.
The next problem is the seven ‘times’ and the interpretation of the dream in chapter 4 of Daniel. We are told in the Kingdom Come book page 133 par 19 that the great tree represents "the typical kingdom of God on earth" and we are told that the seven times represent the duration of the Gentile times. As we study scripture it becomes evident that the Holy Spirit is consistent in His use of idioms. If we look at all the scriptures that use trees as a type we see that trees are never used to represent God’s kingdom on earth. Trees are often used to describe men, kings, and the domain of man’s kingdom. This typology is reaffirmed by the Watchtower Publication "Revelation Its Grand Climax At Hand" when discussing the trees of Rev 8:7, page 133-134, para 17: "..Her prominent ones-standing like trees in the midst of her-....". The description of the tree in Daniel is very similar to the tree at Ezekiel 31 which describes Pharaoh king of Egypt and possibly Satan. In contrast, Jehovah’s kingdom on earth is always described as a mountain, specifically Mount Zion, it is never described as a tree. The growth of the kingdom of God was described as a mustard seed that grew large ‘like a tree’, but a mustard plant is not a tree. Jehovah used Nebuchadnezzar and his kingdom to accomplish His purposes, much like how he uses governments today (Rom 13). Clearly the governments do not represent Jehovah’s kingdom on earth, they belong to Satan, but Jehovah can and does use them to accomplish is purposes on earth. Therefore, Daniel’s interpretation of the dream was clear and simple, the tree represents Nebuchadnezzar and the seven times are simply seven years. Daniel’s interpretation proved to be correct and complete. To give any more meaning to this dream is to go beyond what is written in scripture and, in my opinion, is irresponsible.
The next problem in the 1914 teaching has to do with when the time period is to start. We are told that it started in 607 BCE when the temple was destroyed in Jerusalem. The problem with this is that there is no support for this event occurring in 607. The historical record, the astronomical record, and secular business writing of that time all indicate that the temple was destroyed in 586/587 BCE. But what is more important, the Biblical record does not support the date 607.
The Organization and secular history agree on one date, which is the date that the Jewish captives were released from Babylon, which is 537 BCE. It was foretold that Israel would serve the king of Babylon for 70 years. Jer 25:11,12:
(Jeremiah 25:11,12) And all this land must become a devastated place, an object of astonishment, and these nations will have to serve the king of Babylon seventy years."' 12 "'And it must occur that when seventy years have been fulfilled I shall call to account against the king of Babylon and against that nation,' is the utterance of Jehovah, 'their error, even against the land of the Chal•de'ans, and I will make it desolate wastes to time indefinite.
This is confirmed at Jer 29:10:
(Jeremiah 29:10) "For this is what Jehovah has said, 'In accord with the fulfilling of seventy years at Babylon I shall turn my attention to YOU people, and I will establish toward YOU my good word in bringing YOU back to this place.'
Therefore, Israel was condemned to serve Babylon for a period of seventy years. When did this period start? Daniel 1:1-4 tells us:
(Daniel 1:1-4) In the third year of the kingship of Je•hoi'a•kim the king of Judah, Neb•u•chad•nez'zar the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and proceeded to lay siege to it. 2 In time Jehovah gave into his hand Je•hoi'a•kim the king of Judah and a part of the utensils of the house of the [true] God, so that he brought them to the land of Shi'nar to the house of his god; and the utensils he brought to the treasure-house of his god. 3 Then the king said to Ash'pe•naz his chief court official to bring some of the sons of Israel and of the royal offspring and of the nobles, 4 children in whom there was no defect at all, but good in appearance and having insight into all wisdom and being acquainted with knowledge, and having discernment of what is known, in whom also there was ability to stand in the palace of the king; and to teach them the writing and the tongue of the Chal•de'ans.
Therefore, in the third year (Chalean ascension year is one less than Jewish ascension years) of Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem and carried away utensils and treasure and captives (Daniel and his associates). We know from this that it was in the third year of Jehoiakim but in what year was it for Nebuchadnezzar? Jer 25:1 tell us:
(Jeremiah 25:1) The word that occurred to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Je•hoi'a•kim the son of Jo•si'ah, the king of Judah, that is, the first year of Neb•u•chad•rez'zar the king of Babylon;
From this we learn that when Jehoiakim was in his fourth year (third by Daniel), Nebuchadnezzar was in his first year (or ascension year by Chaldean calculations). Therefore, Israel was in servitude from the start of Nebuchadnezzar reign. If we count back from 537 BCE 70 years we arrive at 607 BCE. The servitude of Israel started in 607 but the temple was not destroyed until much latter. This is shown at Jer 52:12-13:
(Jeremiah 52:12-13) And in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that is, [in] the nineteenth year of King Neb•u•chad•rez'zar, the king of Babylon, Neb•u'zar•ad'an the chief of the bodyguard, who was standing before the king of Babylon, came into Jerusalem. 13 And he proceeded to burn the house of Jehovah and the house of the king and all the houses of Jerusalem; and every great house he burned with fire.
From verse 12 we learn that the temple was destroyed in the 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar. 607-20 (19 + 1 for ascension year) equals 587, which is the year supported by history, astronomy, and secular records. Clearly the Bible doesn’t support the 1914 teaching.
Now we come to the teaching that the ‘last days’ began in 1914. What does the Bible say?
When the disciples were filled with Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit through Peter applied the scripture at Joel 2:28-32 in order to explain this miraculous occurrence. This is found at Acts 2:17-21:
(Acts 2:17-21) '"And in the last days," God says, "I shall pour out some of my spirit upon every sort of flesh, and YOUR sons and YOUR daughters will prophesy and YOUR young men will see visions and YOUR old men will dream dreams; 18 and even upon my men slaves and upon my women slaves I will pour out some of my spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19 And I will give portents in heaven above and signs on earth below, blood and fire and smoke mist; 20 the sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and illustrious day of Jehovah arrives. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved."'
Clearly, by Holy Spirit, Peter considered his day the ‘last days’.
Paul, by Holy Spirit, warned his listeners to turn away from those who in the ‘last days’ would be degenerate sinners. Obviously he considered his day the ‘last days’. This is recorded at 2 Tim 3:1-5 :
3 But know this, that in the last days critical times hard to deal with will be here. 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, self-assuming, haughty, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, disloyal, 3 having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness, 4 betrayers, headstrong, puffed up [with pride], lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godly devotion but proving false to its power; and from these turn away.
James warned his listeners about storing up riches in the ‘last days’, at James 5:3 he wrote by Holy Spirit:
YOUR gold and silver are rusted away, and their rust will be as a witness against YOU and will eat YOUR fleshy parts. Something like fire is what YOU have stored up in the last days.
James spoke of things that affected the congregation of his day, the ‘last days’. Clearly, he thought he was living in the ‘last days’.
Peter spoke about the ‘last days’ when he was helping his listeners deal with those who ridiculed them for their belief in Christ. He wrote, by Holy Spirit at 2 Peter 3:3-4:
For YOU know this first, that in the last days there will come ridicules with their ridicule, proceeding according to their own desires 4 and saying: "Where is this promised presence of his? Why, from the day our forefathers fell asleep [in death], all things are continuing exactly as from creation’s beginning."
John not only considered his day the ‘last days’ but even the ‘last hour’. This is recorded for us at 1John 2:18
(1 John 2:18) Young children, it is the last hour, and, just as YOU have heard that antichrist is coming, even now there have come to be many antichrists; from which fact we gain the knowledge that it is the last hour.
So, are we in the ‘last days’? Absolutely, we are in the last days. When did the last days begin? From the Bible, by the Holy Spirit we learn that they started at Pentecost 33 C.E. and continue down until our time. Every generation from that time have thought that their generation was experiencing the very worst possible conditions. Each generation could look at conditions and see that they could match the conditions Jesus spoke of at Matt 24. Each generation could correctly apply each apostles words to conditions in the world of their day. Each generation could rightfully say these are ‘the last days’. Things are progressing just as Jesus said they would. The conditions that he spoke of were not the signs of the ‘last days’ but were ‘non-signs’. They do not foretell the end, but rather these conditions would be business as usual, natural, normal conditions until Christ comes again.
What about the teaching that the Gentile times ended in 1914? How can this be true given the fact that the gentile nations still trample Jerusalem? In 1948 the nation of Israel was established but they didn’t have control of Jerusalem. In 1967, as a result of the "Six Day War", Israel regained control of the Old City of Jerusalem, but for the most part the Moslems still occupy the city and the Gentile Times continue.
Therefore, it has been shown that every thing that the Organization has taught about 1914 is not true. Jesus has not been reigning in the heavens since 1914. The ‘last days’ did not start in 1914. The Gentile Times did not end in 1914.
Another area of concern is the two class Christian system. That is the 144 thousand and the ‘great crowd’ or ‘other sheep’.
We are told by the Organization that the 144 thousand are spirit anointed Christians who are co-hiers with Christ, who will live in the heavens with Christ reigning as priest and kings over those on the earth. We are told that the 144 thousand are the ‘little flock’ and that they are ‘spiritual Israel’, the ‘Israel of God’ mentioned at Gal 6:16. We are told that all of the promises that Jehovah made to Israel through his covenants will be fulfilled not on natural Israel, because they rejected Christ, but will be fulfilled upon the anointed class. The ‘other sheep’ or ‘great crowd’ are those who will live through the ‘great tribulation’ and will inhabit the kingdom on earth.
The ‘little flock’ designation comes from Luke 12:32 which reads:
(Luke 12:32) "Have no fear, little flock, because YOUR Father has approved of giving YOU the kingdom.
The ‘other sheep’ designation comes from John 10:16, which states:
(John 10:16) "And I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; those also I must bring, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, one shepherd.
It seems obvious that Jesus was not talking about two separate classes of ‘sheep’ the ‘little flock’ are those few Jews that would accept Jesus, the ‘other sheep’ are the Gentiles that would accept Jesus. They would no longer be separated by law and tradition but would be brought together into the body of Christ. Since the ‘other sheep’ and ‘little flock’ are brought together into one flock, under one shepherd, they all must all be at the same place, the same location. It doesn’t make sense that some will be in heaven while others are on earth. This teaching is amplified by Paul in his letter to the Ephesians:
(Ephesians 2:14-18) For he is our peace, he who made the two parties one and destroyed the wall in between that fenced them off. 15 By means of his flesh he abolished the enmity, the Law of commandments consisting in decrees, that he might create the two peoples in union with himself into one new man and make peace; 16 and that he might fully reconcile both peoples in one body to God through the torture stake, because he had killed off the enmity by means of himself. 17 And he came and declared the good news of peace to YOU, the ones far off, and peace to those near, 18 because through him we, both peoples, have the approach to the Father by one spirit.
Clearly, Jesus removed the barrier between Gentile and Jew who are now brought into one flock, under one shepherd, through his shed blood.
Who then are the 144 thousand and ‘great crowd’?
While I was studying the Watchtower Library I came across the following article:
***w51 9/1 518 Hated for His Name***
Diocletian assumed the crown A.D. 284. At first he seemed friendly to the Christians, but in the year 303 he gave in to persuasion and opened the tenth persecution, probably the most ferocious of all. Suffocation by smoke, forcible drinking of melted lead, mass drownings and burnings, breaking on the rack of men and women alike ran the empire with blood. In a single month 17,000 were slain. In the province of Egypt alone, 144,000 such professed Christians died by violence in the course of this persecution, in addition to another 700,000 who died as a result of fatigues encountered in banishment or under enforced public works.
*** w51 9/1 518-9 Hated for His Name *** It must be noted that even the harsh, totalitarian government of ancient Rome saw fit to cover its persecutions with false charges against the victims, as if it quailed at killing them openly for no other reason than "their religion". Summarizing the many excuses such as 'insulting the gods of Rome', 'renouncing the emperor,' 'noncompliance with military duty,' etc., the edict closing the tenth persecution in 311 declared by way of justification that the oppressions had been used to cause Christians to return to 'the old traditional religion of their fathers' and thus end the following of their 'own devices
*** w51 9/1 519 Hated for His Name *** Everything was done to paint the Christians in an unfavorable light. Though falsely charged with burning Rome in Nero's day, Tacitus informs us, they were then convicted more for the charge of 'hating the human race'. True, they were outspoken, openly proclaiming the coming destruction of the godless world system. Their materially-minded enemies called them 'gloomy and austere', and charged that they sought to bring about an immediate fulfillment of their prophecies through seditious overthrow of the authorities. The government was far more anxious that they should recant than that they should suffer, possibly because of the blight these innocent lives cast upon Roman history. Even when convicted, Christians still held the choice of life (by compromise) or death in their own hands. For every imaginable evil, be it earthquake, plague or flood, Christians were sure to receive the blame from the superstitious Romans who fancied these to be sure tokens of the anger of their gods over the very existence of the Christians. But for all of this, it is noteworthy that many pagans, even officers in the army, were converted to Christianity by the unwavering faith of the Christians while enduring the cruelest torture.
Fighting opposition, they kept going forward; their worship banned, they continued their assemblies, though often in the recesses of underground cemeteries, the catacombs. Just as true of pre-Christian witnesses of Jehovah God described by Paul's letter to the Hebrews, so were these faithful ones ' . . . stoned . . . sawn asunder . . . slaughtered with the sword . . . in want, in tribulation, under ill-treatment; and the world was not worthy of them. . . .'-Hebrews 11:37, 38, NW.
Apparently, from these articles by the end of the 3rd century over 800 thousand Christians had been put to death. This raises the question: were these Christians spirit anointed Christians? If so, then the 144 thousand must not be who we are told they are. There must be many more then only 144 thousand who are anointed Christians destined to reign with Christ as co-heirs of the Kingdom. I’m not the first to raise this question, in the following year there was a question from readers about this:
*** w52 1/15 62 Questions from Readers *** • According to the article "Hated for His Name" in the September 1, 1951, Watchtower, hundreds of thousands of Christians died in the "ten persecutions" starting in Nero's time, 144,000 dying in Egypt alone during one of the persecutions. How can this be harmonized with the Scriptural limitation of 144,000 placed on the number being in Christ's body, and which position was the only one open to Christians during those centuries?-J.A., Dominican Republic.
The article did not class with any finality the individuals that died during these persecutions, but spoke of the results in a general way. Note that a key qualification was made in the case referred to in the question: "In the province of Egypt alone, 144,000 such professed Christians died by violence in the course of this persecution, in addition to another 700,000 who died as a result of fatigues encountered in banishment or under enforced public works." The victims are identified as "professed Christians", not Christians in fact. Many of those persons might have been caught in the wave of persecution, but may never have actually preached the truth or followed in Jesus' footsteps, being only professed Christians. They knew the world they lived in was rotten and they were listening to the message of the Christians and willing to die for it even though not in line for the high calling in Christ Jesus. Many professed Christians today might be willing to die for their faith, but still not be Jesus' footstep followers and meeting the Scriptural requirements for such.
The Organization attempts to side step this issue by claiming that those killed, those who gave their lives in order to maintain their integrity to Jesus and Jehovah God were not real Christians but only professed Christians. Does that make sense to you? Would people profess to be something they weren’t, knowing that by doing so they were condemning themselves and their families to death? It was very easy to save ones life in that day, all they had to is burn some incense on an alter to Caesar. But they chose to die rather than deny Christ. Their everlasting life was more important to them then this temporary fleshly life. These were true spirit anointed Christians. To suggest otherwise is an insult to their memory. The word Martyr comes from the Greek word murtus, which means Witness. These Christians were Witnesses of the highest order. If we, who only go door-to-door, are considered true Christians because of our meager witness, then how much more so those who have given their lives for their love of Jesus Christ.
As I study Bible prophecy it becomes obvious that Jehovah says what he means and means what he says. All prophecies given in scripture that have been fulfilled to date have been fulfilled literally. Not one prophecy has ever been fulfilled in a figurative or allegorical way. To confirm this statement all we have to do is look at the prophecies about Jesus and we learn that He fulfilled them all and all were fulfilled literally.
Jehovah has made very specific covenants or contracts with Israel. The Abrahamic Covenant, the Palestinian Covenant, the Dividic Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant and the New Covenant.
Jehovah concluded a unilateral covenant with Abraham. The conditions of this covenant are as follows:
All Families Blessed: Genesis 12:1-3
Promise of Promised Land: Genesis 13:14-15
Promised Seed and Land: Genesis 15:4-21
Covenant Everlasting and Possession of the Land Everlasting: Genesis 17:1-8
The promises in the Abrahamic covenant concerning the land and the seed are to be completely fulfilled in the millennial age (Isa 10:21-22;19:25;43:1;65:8-9; Jer. 30:22;32:38; Ezek 34:24, 30-31; Mic 7:19-20; Zec 13:9; Mal 3:16-18). Israel’s perpetuity, their possession of the land, and their inheritance of blessings are directly related to the fulfillment of this covenant.
Jehovah concluded an unilateral covenant with Israel in Palestine referred to as the Palestinic covenant. Some of its features are:
Israel to be Regathered, Abrahamic Covenant Confirmed: Deuteronomy 30:1-9
Promise of Restoration, Repossession of Land Everlasting: Jeremiah 32:36-44
Israel Restored, Evil Removed, Conversion, Evil Recompense: Ezekiel 11:16-21
The promises in the Palestinic covenant concerning the possession of the land are fulfilled by Israel in the Millennial age (Isa 11:11-12;65:9;Ezek 16:60-63;36:28-29;39:28; Hos 1:10-2:1;Mic 2:12;Zech 10:6).
Jehovah concluded an unilateral covenant with Israel through King David. Some of the features of this covenant are:
Promise of a King and Kingdom: 2 Samuel 7:10-16
Everlasting Earthly Covenant: Psalm 89:30-37
The promises of the Davidic covenant concerning the king, the throne, and the royal house are to be fulfilled by Messiah in the millennial age (Isa 11:1-2; 55:3,11; Jer 23:5-8;33:20-26; Ezek 34:23-25;37:23-24; Hos 3:5; Mic 4:7-8). The fact that Israel has a kingdom, over which David’s Son reigns as King, is based on this Davidic covenant.
Jehovah also concluded a unilateral covenant with Israel referred to as the New Covenant replacing the bilateral covenant known as the Mosaic Law. Some of the features of the New Covenant are:
Will Replace Mosaic Law, Forgiveness of Sin, Promise of Holy Spirit: Jeremiah 31:31-34
Promised to be Everlasting: Ezekiel 16:60
Promised Salvation and Holy Spirit: Isaiah 59:20-21
The promises of the new covenant of a new heart, the forgiveness of sin, the filling of the Spirit are partially fulfilled by true Christians but will see complete fulfillment in the converted nation in the millennial age (Jer 31:31-34;32;35-39;Ezek 11:18-20;16:60-63;37:26;Rom 11:26-29). All the spiritual blessings Israel receives are in fulfillment of this covenant.
All Israel’s covenants are unconditional except the Mosaic. The Abrhamic Covenant is expressly declared to be eternal and therefore unconditional in numerous passages (Gen 17:7, 13, 19; 1Chron 16:17; Ps 105:10). The Palestinian Covenant is likewise declared to be everlasting (Ezek 16:60). The Dividic Covenant is described in the same terms (2Sam 7:13,16, 19; 1Chron 17:12; 22:10; Isa 55:3; Ezek 37:25). The new covenant with Israel is also eternal (Isa 61:8; Jer 32:40; 50:5; Heb 13:20).
Except for the original condition of leaving his homeland and going to the promised land, the Abrahamic covenant is made with no conditions whatever. The Abrahamic Covenant is confirmed repeatedly by reiteration and enlargement. In none of these instances are any of the added promises conditioned upon the faithfulness of Abraham’s seed or of Abraham himself, nothing is said about it being conditioned upon the future faithfulness of either Abraham or his seed.
The Abrahamic Covenant was solemnized by a divinely ordered ritual symbolizing the shedding of blood and passing between the parts of the sacrifice (Gen 15:7-21; Jer 34:18). This ceremony was given to Abraham as an assurance that his seed would inherit the land in the exact boundaries given to him in Genesis 15:18-21. No conditions whatever are attached in his promise in this context.
To distinguish those who would inherit the promises as individuals from those who were only physical seed of Abraham, the visible sign of circumcision was given (Gen 17:9-14). One not circumcised was considered outside the promised blessing. The ultimate fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant and possession of the land by the seed is not hinged, however, upon faithfulness in the matter of circumcision. In fact the promises of the land were given before the rite was introduced.
The Abrahamic Covenant was confirmed by the birth of Isaac and Jacob to both of whom the promises are repeated in their original form (Gen 17:19; 28:12-13) Notable is the fact that the reiterations of the covenant and the partial early fulfillment of the covenant are in spite of acts of disobedience. It is clear that on several instances Abraham strayed from the will of God. In the very act, the promises are repeated to him.
The later confirmations of the covenant are given in the midst of apostasy. Important is the promise given through Jeremiah that Israel as a nation will continue forever (Jer 31:36).
The Greek Scriptures declare that the Abrahamic Covenant to be immutable (Heb 6:13-18; cf. Gen 15:8-21). It was not only promised but solemnly confirmed by the oath of God.
The entire Scriptural revelation concerning Israel and its future as contained in both the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures. When interpreted literally, these scriptures confirm and sustain the unconditional character of the promises given to Abraham and are confirmed through all of the other covenant agreements between Jehovah and Israel.
Paul confirms this understanding in the 9th, 10th and 11th chapters of Romans. Paul makes this clear in Romans 11: 25-29:
(Romans 11:25-29) For I do not want YOU, brothers, to be ignorant of this sacred secret, in order for YOU not to be discreet in your own eyes: that a dulling of sensibilities has happened in part to Israel until the full number of people of the nations has come in, 26 and in this manner all Israel will be saved. Just as it is written: "The deliverer will come out of Zion and turn away ungodly practices from Jacob. 27 And this is the covenant on my part with them, when I take their sins away." 28 True, with reference to the good news they are enemies for YOUR sakes, but with reference to [God's] choosing they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are not things he will regret.
The Israel of verse 25 who have had their ‘sensibilities dulled’ are natural Israel. The Israel of verse 26 who will be ‘saved’ are also natural Israel. Yes, Israel has rejected Jesus, but Jehovah, who is true to his word, will once again turn his attention to Israel and give them the fulfillment of all his promises. Therefore, the 144 thousand of Revelation 7 and 14, are not spiritual Israel. They are not the ‘Israel of God’. The ‘Israel of God’ are those, Jews and Gentiles, who accept Jesus between the time of his first coming and his second coming, they are the Christian church, the body of Christ, the ‘little flock’ in unity with the ‘other sheep’.
If we take a closer look at Revelation 7 we learn that John’s attention is turned toward the earth. John ‘heard’ the number of those who were sealed. The 144 thousand represent those Jews that will be sealed by Jehovah at the start of the tribulation in order for them to give a special witness to the world during the ‘great tribulation’. To be sealed implies that they are a special possesion of God and under his protection during the ‘great tribulation’. The 144 thousand are those who are the ‘first fruits’ "unto God and the Lamb" for the millennial kingdom. I’m familiar with the arguments that the 144 thousand listed in Revelation 7 are only figurative because the list is not the original 12 tribes, and the Jew’s don’t know what tribe they belong to. But that argument is very weak in view of the fact that in the Hebrew scriptures there are no fewer than twenty variant lists of the tribes, and these lists include any where from ten to thirteen tribes, though the number twelve is predominant (Gen 35:22; 46:8; 46:49; Ex 1:1; Nu 1:2; 13:4; 26:34; De 27:11; 33:6; Jos 13:1; 22:1; Jud 5:1; 1Ch 2:1; 8:1; 12:24; 27:16; Eze 48:1; are some examples). Clearly, the omission of one or more of the tribes does not indicate that the list is figurative. Also, the Jews don’t need to know what tribe they come from, the Holy Spirit knows. The number given, 144 thousand, is an exact number. If the number is literal, it is only logical that the tribes are literal as well. The Holy Spirit has gone to great length to be very specific, I think that this means that His words should be taken literally.
Revelation 14 pictures the 144 thousand and the Lamb as standing on Mount Zion, having His Father’s name written on their foreheads, in contrast with those who had the mark of the beast written on their foreheads during in the ‘great tribulation’. Is Mount Zion and Jerusalem spritual? Yes, in the context of Heb 12: 22-23, but not in the context of Revelation 14. The events discussed in Rev 12 through 14 deal with the events that take place upon the earth, so the context is earthly. Rev 14:2 indicates that a voice was heard coming ‘from’ heaven, indicating that it was heard by those on the earth. In verse 3 it indicates that ‘they’, the harpists, sang a new song before the throne, no one on earth could learn that song except the 144 thousand who were redeemed from the earth. The fact that they are "before the throne" does not mean that they are in heaven, as we all know, the earth is Jehovahs’ footstool. Therefore, the interpretation that they are on earth agrees with the context. Mount Zion is a geographical location on the earth, the seat of kingdom power in Jerusalem. This is where Jesus will return in His spritual body (Rev 1:7; 1Cor 15: 35-49). Revelation 14 fulfills many prophecies given in Scripture such as:
(Psalm 2:6) [Saying:] "I, even I, have installed my king Upon Zion, my holy mountain."
(Psalm 132:13) For Jehovah has chosen Zion; He has longed for it as a dwelling for himself:
(Isaiah 49:14-15) But Zion kept saying: "Jehovah has left me, and Jehovah himself has forgotten me." 15 Can a wife forget her suckling so that she should not pity the son of her belly? Even these women can forget, yet I myself shall not forget you.
(Joel 2:32) And it must occur that everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will get away safe; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will prove to be the escaped ones, just as Jehovah has said, and in among the survivors, whom Jehovah is calling."
(Micah 4:7,8) And I shall certainly make her that was limping a remnant, and her that was removed far off a mighty nation; and Jehovah will actually rule as king over them in Mount Zion, from now on and into time indefinite. 8 "And as for you, O tower of the drove, the mound of the daughter of Zion, as far as to you it will come, yes, the first dominion will certainly come, the kingdom belonging to the daughter of Jerusalem.
Therefore, the 144 thousand live upon the earth during the tribulation and will live upon the earth during the millennial reign of Christ. An interesting point is found at Revelation 5:10:
(Revelation 5:10) and you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth."
This is the song of the 24 Elders who, we are told, represent the 144 thousand. They will rule ‘over the earth’. However the literal Greek from the Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures (1985 Edition) renders the Greek:
"And you made them to the God of us kingdom and priest and they are reigning upon the earth"
Notice that the original Greek text says that the 24 Elders (the 144,000 according to Watchtower doctrine) will rule ‘upon the earth’. The Greek word ‘epi’ is correctly translated ‘upon’. However, in the English text of the NWT ‘epi’ is mistranslated ‘over’. The Greek word for ‘over’ is ‘mper’, which is not used in the text. The correct translation of these prepositions is explained on the diagram printed on the cover page of the book. Why did the NWT decide to mistranslate ‘epi’ as ‘over’ rather then ‘upon’? Translators have some liberty when making their translations more readable but they do not have liberty to change the meaning of the text. Clearly, to rule ‘upon the earth’ indicates that the 144 thousand will be on the earth rather than ‘over’ the earth in heaven.
The ‘great crowd’ are those Jews and Gentiles who respond to the message of the 144 thousand during the ‘great tribulation’. Some of these will live on earth with the 144 thousand during the mellinnial kingdom, but some will die and be resurected, this is what we see in Verses 9-11. The ‘great crowd’ are seen with the Lamb, all the angels, the elders and four creatures standing before the throne, clothed in white robes. The fact that they are before the throne indicates that they could either be on the earth or in heaven, but taken in view of Verse 15, which says: "....and serve Him day and night in His temple.", we can only conclude that they serve God in his heavenly temple. The Greek word for temple in this verse is, according to Thayer:
3485 naos-
"used of the temple at Jerusalem, but only of the sacred edifice (or sanctuary) itself, consisting of the Holy place and the Holy of Holies (in Classical Greek it is used of the sanctuary or cell of the temple, where the image of gold was placed which is distinguished from the whole enclosure)"
Therefore, the ‘great crowd’ serve Jehovah in his temple in heaven, in the Holy of Holies. The fact that they are in heaven would indicate that they have died. Verse 14 confirms this in that they came ‘out of the great tribulation’, they did not live ‘through’ the ‘great tribulation’. Literally, "ones coming out", is a present participle, expressing a continuous and repeated action, not a once-for-all time action. As Robertson’s Word Pictures explains: "They which come out of the great tribulation (hoi erchomenoi ek tês thlipseôs tês megalês). Present middle participle with the idea of continued repetition. "The martyrs are still arriving from the scene of the great tribulation" (Charles)." Therefore, individuals will become members of the ‘great crowd’ in heaven, individually, throughout the ‘great tribulation’. This is not a one-time occurrence, that happens to a group at the end of the tribulation. Revelation 19:1 also confirms that the ‘great crowd’ are in heaven:
(Revelation 19:1) After these things I heard what was as a loud voice of a great crowd in heaven. They said: "Praise Jah, YOU people! The salvation and the glory and the power belong to our God,
Another contention of the Organization is that the Bible is a special ‘letter’ written by Jehovah for his anointed class, the 144 thousand. It is obvious to me that the Bible was not written for a special class of Christian, but rather it was written for all those who accept Christ. From the time of his first coming until the time of is second coming, all those who accept Christ as savior are baptized in Holy Spirit and are born of God and can call God "abba", Father (1Jn 5:1). All true Christians are sons of God, co-heirs with Christ, priest and kings in the kingdom of God. When we study about the anointed in the Watchtower many say that they can’t understand the special relationship that the anointed have with Jehovah and Jesus. It’s hard to understand because the Watchtower makes it hard to understand. If we study the Bible, especially Romans the 8th chapter and apply those words to ourselves, then it becomes very clear and easy to understand. All true Christians are anointed Christians. I think this is true even if we don’t realize it. But by not realizing it, we rob ourselves of a very special and intimate relationship that is ours for the asking. In my opinion, this is the greatest error the Watchtower Organization is guilty of. They have alienated the greater number of their followers from the loving relationship that is rightfully theirs. This may be why meeting attendance and field service hours have been going down. The sheep don’t hear the voice of the Good Shepherd. They aren’t being spiritually fed with the ‘meat’ of the Bible. They are being fed with sinful human thinking that is sprinkled with a few scriptures. If they were being fed God’s word you wouldn’t be able to keep them away from the meetings.
Clearly, the Watchtower teaching of 1914 and the two class Christian system is wrong. Is it bad to be wrong? No, from time to time everyone in wrong. What is bad, is to force others to accept without question, teachings that are at best speculative human thinking. One must accept these teachings or face possible disfellowshipping and shunning, these are powerful weapons that the Organization uses to force uniformity. Paul, when he spoke for the Lord said so, but when he was speaking his own thoughts he also said so and the reader could take it for what it was worth. Why isn’t the Organization like that? The Organization seeks uniformity. Uniformity is something that comes from the outside, the surface. The religious leaders of Jesus day demanded uniformity, they washed the outside and left the inside soiled. Unity on the other hand comes from within. When we are moved from the heart to follow Christ we grow in our walk with Him. As we grow the outside changes to reflect the inside. I think the Organization is more concerned with the outside then they are with the inside. They seek the appearance of unity by forcing uniformity. The history of the organization shows that it lost it’s focus after the death of Russell. The organization in the hands of Rutherford and others became focused not on bringing people to God but rather bringing people to the Organization. Russell was against organization. Russell wrote in the Watchtower 12/1/1894, page 1866: "A visible organization is out of harmony with God’s divine plan." However, Rutherford made it the visible representation of Jehovah God. In that context, the Organization has become an idol of worship, this conclusion is based upon it’s own published definition of worship found in the Watchtower:
*** w61 9/1 525 Hold Your Position *** If one renders obedient service to someone or some organization, whether willingly or under compulsion, looking up to such as possessing a position of superior rulership and great authority, then that one can Scripturally be said to be a worshiper.
The historical record of the Organization shows a history of dedication to serving God. But it also shows a record of erroneous doctrine and misunderstanding of Bible teaching. If we were to look at the Organization factually, we would see it as an imperfect human organization, much like any other human religious organization. It is an organization instituted and operated by sinful humans. Is it "God’s Channel"? When a Christian prays to God for spiritual guidance from the Holy Spirit and if he acts in harmony with his prayer, then he can expect to receive the requested guidance. Does the Holy Spirit guide us into error? I don’t think He does. Our errors are our own. When we make errors we can not claim to be spirit guided. The same thing would apply to a religious organization. When the Organization makes errors it is working on it’s own, it is not Gods channel. How are we to know when the Organization is right or wrong about something? Do we follow it blindly and just hope for the best? No, I think it is the responsibility of each member to study for themselves and make their own decisions as to the correctness of a teaching, and then to speak out for correct teaching and against error. One day we will all stand before the judgment seat of God and give an accounting of ourselves and the things that we have taught others. The Organization is not going to be there to defend us.
Jesus is calling out to each one of us. He is knocking at the door of the heart of each one of us. He is not calling out to a church, not to a denomination, not to an Organization, but to each one of us individually. Are we listening? Will we open the door and dine with, or have communion with Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior? The choice is ours. (Rev 3:20-21)
There is much more that could be said. However, I think this addresses the two central issues that have been my greatest concern. In view of my present understanding, it has been impossible for me to teach Watchtower doctrine from the platform and from door-to-door.
Your Brother In His Service,
Carl Yarbrough
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